I know vista was considered a failure but my wife has it since launch on her PC and she lives it. She has never has an issue with it .

The problem with windows 8 in my opinion is that its 2 operating systems in 1. It has no identity . In the commercials you see the metro side but windows 7 is still there and most people will be using that side of the os. Also this 3-4 year os life cycle is really annoying to people/ corporations.
installing a new os , backing up files and such and redownloading stuff is a choir to most people,kinda like taking out the garbage. Just patch the existing os and leave it at that.

I beta tested win7 and win8. I put both on my machines on their respective launch days, what a lot of people don't realize is that 8 takes the solid foundation of 7 and builds on it via better memory usage and better multicore support. I remember when people had nothing but complaints about windows XP it wasn't until service pack 2 came out that people started to like it. I work in retail and sell computers I have seen a positive response to win 8 from consumers the only people that seem to have a problem with 8 are the so called "power users" which is kind of ironic since they are so "tech savvy" they should be able to adapt much faster then my 60 year old and up customers but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Serves no purpose? How about the purpose of creating an OS to cater to the changing landscape of input methods. People are increasingly demanding alternative methods to the standard mouse/keyboard - Touch, Voice, Motion, etc. MSFT has been trying to bring Touch around for years to larger devices and finally got there with Windows 8.

Also you can easily boot to the DT by using 3rd party apps like Start8. It even brings back the legacy Start button for those folks who fear change.

Shouldn't need a 3rd party app to do what your users want. That is the problem with win8, during all of the beta's, consumers kept telling Microsoft what they wanted and MS ignored them - which is quickly becoming Microsoft's MO in all aspects of their business. The ONLY reason to go to Win8 is Touch. If you don't have a touch enabled device, it is a pain in the a$$, so why upgrade if your Win7 works like you want and the new OS DOES NOT work like you want. Most Windows users have learned to AVOID third party plug-ins like start8 because of malware or other drawbacks such as memory leaks or CPU cycles. As a result, the normal Windows veteran does NOT see that as a viable option to do what they are already doing.

I know vista was considered a failure but my wife has it since launch on her PC and she lives it. She has never has an issue with it .

The problem with windows 8 in my opinion is that its 2 operating systems in 1. It has no identity . In the commercials you see the metro side but windows 7 is still there and most people will be using that side of the os. Also this 3-4 year os life cycle is really annoying to people/ corporations.
installing a new os , backing up files and such and redownloading stuff is a choir to most people,kinda like taking out the garbage. Just patch the existing os and leave it at that.

Vista is slow, slOW, SLOW - that is the problem. Same computer is 10x's faster with Win7.

This isn't surprising at all. I just hope Microsoft takes this as a lesson and changes back in windows 9 before they lose too much money.

Why on Earth would they change back? The entire landscape is shifting towards alternative input methods like touch, voice, motion, etc? That is the reason for Win8 - to meld this together across devices via a unified OS core, regardless of form factor.

Once Touch screen capacity for laptops, AIOs, and new alternative form factors catches up, you will see solid win8 growth. Much of the delay now is around Touch capacity issues, and retailers having too much old Win7 inventory from Summer/Fall on their books.

I think that people who think that MS would be better served going back to the old UI are being short sighted, or don't see how the entire industry is moving.

It's understandable that people want to stay with what they know. But technology doesn't work that way. That's how tech companies die.

Windows 8 is awesome with touch, and adequate with a mouse. It's not even "bad" with a mouse. It's just different. But because it retains all the functionality of Windows 7, people want to access everything the same way that they're used to. And the change in the Start screen is making people who are resistant to change upset. But I believe that is a temporary problem.

Technology moves, whether you like it or not. And different individuals come to accept that reality at different times. Then they must move forward. Because if they don't, they'll become dinosaurs. Because you know what? All those young college kids, high school kids, elementary school kids, and even preschool kids are moving forward. My 4 yr old can navigate on my Surface with no problem. He knows how to read, but not really how to spell yet. But he's figured out that he can use Search and Autocomplete when using my Surface or Windows Phone. So he just has to figure out the first 2 or 3 letters of the word he wants, then choose from the list. He also can navigate my wife's Kindle and my sister's iPhone.

@Bold: I have a similar story. I was mainly an XP user and at first glance Windows 8 seemed unnecessarily foreign but I like it now. Its not perfect but it is much better. Within a few days I bought two more licenses. One computer with 7 was upgraded and the other wasn't.

Yes, I do need more reasons. None of those are applicable to my usage patterns. Would some of them be nice? Sure. Do any of them matter enough to plunk down cash? **** no. I'm totally satisfied with my mid-2009 Macbook in 2013. I've upgraded to 8 gigs of RAM, replaced the battery once, and use bootcamp frequently, no need for anything more.

now this doesn't have anything to do with Win8, but I see one upgrade you may want (though I haven't seen the full spec of your machine) GET AN SSD!!

just want to say in this last post that Win8 has been out for what? 2~3 month? it has not flopped like people are making it out to be, MS is in a new shorter cycle for releasing new Windows, this has to be accounted for when talking about sales figures, XP lived way too long and should have died a lot sooner, that is the only reason Vista had more traction than what it would have had if the duration was shorter, now i'll play the devil as well here, I've had Vista for a couple of years and since I was a retail tech back then this is what I observed

1 - Vista is not as bad as some people would have you think, it is actually very reliable once you have the right hardware
2 - Intel is to blame for the crappy reputation Vista received, they forced MS to put out a Vista Capable sticker, which are machines that just simply could not run Vista properly
3 - Microsoft is at fault for this part, they never gave OEM enough time to build drivers out before releasing Vista, that caused the initial incompatibility issue for almost all accessories and hardware, dumb strategy...
4 - Vista is resource heavy, but not by that much as what some are saying, XP is a resource hog too, Vista just added abit more to that, and in the end, it's the crap that OEMs put on their brandname PCs that slows the whole system down, do a clean install then you will see what I mean

Win 7 definitely trumps Vista (and walks all over it) I'm just saying that it wasn't as bad as what alot of people think, and Windows 8 just need a chance to prove itself, heck I've shown it to many many people and they like it after they understood what it is, our company is testing it out now too (but with our corporate speed... so it won't be another year or two before any deployment starts)

i personally think that windows 8 is pretty good. Do i find myself going from metro to the desktop more frequently than not, sure. But that isnt to say the metro side of it is useless, for example universal search is probably my favorite aspect about windows 8. makes everything work much faster as opposed hitting start looking for the program. Another aspect about windows 8 thats just much better is the grouping of legacy applications to meet my needs. Creating a group of applications allows me to prioritize what i have to get done. For example set up office as one group of applications while bundling in bing, IE10 metro, and mail, this allows me to get work done quicker. Another group would be media consumption music videos youtube (site pinned) spotify. Another would be a group for social networking facebook twitter etc.. so it isnt entirely useless and every application lets me make use of the universal function that will automatically search within specific apps. Charms allow me to access settings for specific apps much easier. All in all, this coupled with the speed minimalism and hardware friendliness of the OS makes windows 8 a pleasing experience on the eyes and mind because i know that its secure. this is all imho take it as you will.

just want to say in this last post that Win8 has been out for what? 2~3 month? it has not flopped like people are making it out to be, MS is in a new shorter cycle for releasing new Windows, this has to be accounted for when talking about sales figures, XP lived way too long and should have died a lot sooner, that is the only reason Vista had more traction than what it would have had if the duration was shorter, now i'll play the devil as well here, I've had Vista for a couple of years and since I was a retail tech back then this is what I observed

1 - Vista is not as bad as some people would have you think, it is actually very reliable once you have the right hardware
2 - Intel is to blame for the crappy reputation Vista received, they forced MS to put out a Vista Capable sticker, which are machines that just simply could not run Vista properly
3 - Microsoft is at fault for this part, they never gave OEM enough time to build drivers out before releasing Vista, that caused the initial incompatibility issue for almost all accessories and hardware, dumb strategy...
4 - Vista is resource heavy, but not by that much as what some are saying, XP is a resource hog too, Vista just added abit more to that, and in the end, it's the crap that OEMs put on their brandname PCs that slows the whole system down, do a clean install then you will see what I mean

Win 7 definitely trumps Vista (and walks all over it) I'm just saying that it wasn't as bad as what alot of people think, and Windows 8 just need a chance to prove itself, heck I've shown it to many many people and they like it after they understood what it is, our company is testing it out now too (but with our corporate speed... so it won't be another year or two before any deployment starts)

i agree vista was pretty reliable for me. needless to say i do agree with the notion that 7 and 8 murder it in terms of usability.

Shouldn't need a 3rd party app to do what your users want. That is the problem with win8, during all of the beta's, consumers kept telling Microsoft what they wanted and MS ignored them - which is quickly becoming Microsoft's MO in all aspects of their business. The ONLY reason to go to Win8 is Touch. If you don't have a touch enabled device, it is a pain in the a$$, so why upgrade if your Win7 works like you want and the new OS DOES NOT work like you want. Most Windows users have learned to AVOID third party plug-ins like start8 because of malware or other drawbacks such as memory leaks or CPU cycles. As a result, the normal Windows veteran does NOT see that as a viable option to do what they are already doing.

i use win8 on a desktop and its just as easy to use in that regard as it is in touch dude.

What makes Win8 great is also what is the barrier for adoption: touch. Touch is what is holding my organization from making much of an investment in Win8 now. I have used the trackpads and everything, but I think the OS works best with a touchscreen monitor because that is when users actually enjoy using the OS from my observations. Also, there is no compelling reason to invest in touch because there are not a ton of work applications that utilize it right now.

I currently have two non-touch PCs running Windows 8. I have yet to experience the device on a touch enabled device. So I can't speak to how great it is. I have heard from many on here and a few friends who are tech geeks that its best to use the OS on a touch device. Maybe that sentiment is a barrier?

My two PCs used Vista previously and I though they ran okay. I only upgraded cause the price couldn't be beat. With that said, I personally don't know anyone who isn't a tech geek that is running out to upgrade their PC or by new devices just to use Windows 8. Someone like my mother in law, who really is open to learning new technology, would see no pressing need to upgrade as long as her computer running Vista can do the things average folks need to do.

Unless emails crap gold or somehow Windows 8 and touch devices results in getting free crap from Amazon, what reason does someone have for upgrading if it isn't a necessity?

My good old x200t came with Vista, I didn't have a problem with it, just found that don't reboot/cold boot it and if you do, wait have a coffee then all will be fine shortly after :) I had an ssd in it so that helped. I upgraded to windows 7 on the x200t... I was thinking to put win8 on it too but I need that to be stable for my work and still use ie8 for compatibility reasons.

Only thing holding me back from win8 is a long overdue upgrade and the ThinkPad helix is not out yet! Worried if it's going to be limited to 4gb of ram though

I'm not surprised. The tech press has devoted endless column-inches (real and virtual) to slamming W8 for 18 months now. The average person has never used W8 but "knows" that its terrible because they saw it on CNet in an article written by a Mac fanboy who covers "PCs."

Yes, I do need more reasons. None of those are applicable to my usage patterns. Would some of them be nice? Sure. Do any of them matter enough to plunk down cash? **** no. I'm totally satisfied with my mid-2009 Macbook in 2013. I've upgraded to 8 gigs of RAM, replaced the battery once, and use bootcamp frequently, no need for anything more.

I have connections high up at Microsoft, can't tell you any more on that, you'll just have to trust me. Besides the internet never lies. I got my hands on a copy of Windows 9. I downloaded on my computer, WOW!!! It's purely voice command, no keyboard no mouse. Its written with alien code they found from the Roswell crash. Can't go into details, lets just say the future is here now. . . Today. . . The wait is over. One more thing, its CPU intelligence gets greater every time you use it, that's right it learns!!! I'm scared very scared.

I put Win 8 on my aging desktop running Vista to see if I liked it. It took a day or two of my constant playing with the computer to realize that once I had it configured the way I liked it, I actually came to love it. I like it so much, I put Win 8 on my wife's laptop, bought my daughter a Win 8 laptop, and even bought myself a Surface RT. I am now looking at the WP8 devices as my contract with Sprint is up this month. I might just switch to AT&T and get my some Nokia love.